The Iowa Supreme Court denied a request from Gov. Kim Reynolds to rehear a case involving state law that requires a 24-hour waiting period prior to an abortion.
The request came so the Iowa Supreme Court could rule on what legal standard would be applied to future abortion regulations in Iowa. Instead, those standards will have to first be argued before a lower court judge.
Reynolds’ hope was the case would be expedited. It will instead go through the normal process.
The ACLU of Iowa and Planned Parenthood North Central States cheered the announcement:
“We are pleased that the Court has declined the Governor’s radical proposal to immediately revisit its 24-hour decision and eliminate the right to safe and legal abortion in Iowa. Nearly one in four American women have an abortion at some point in their lives, for a variety of deeply personal reasons. The majority of Iowans support their right to do so, and we will continue to fight to preserve it going forward.”
Senator Zach Wahls, the Democrat leader in the chamber, said the Iowa Supreme Court “made the right decision.”
“Iowa GOP wants to completely ban abortion without exceptions,” Wahls tweeted. “11,000-plus Iowans have signed our petition to protect abortion rights instead of the radical Republican agenda. We must protect reproductive rights & abortion access in Iowa.”
